Special Stop-smoking Class Offered For Pregnant Women

The American Lung Association has a message for pregnant women who smoke: Now`s the time to quit, for both of you.

The health hazards of smoking are doubled for the pregnant woman, says Carol Ruggeri, director of environment programs for the local chapter of the American Lung Association.

``Most women who smoke while pregnant are going to cause some harm to their baby,`` she said.

``They are robbing that child of oxygen and may end up with a low-birth- weight baby and 40 percent of those babies have problems when they are born,`` she said. ``They have to realize what they are putting into their bodies, nicotine, is a drug.``

To make quitting as easy as possible, the association is offering ``Quitting for Two,`` a free smoking-cessation program geared to pregnant women. The program is also being sponsored by the Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition and the Broward County Public Health Unit.

The program is six weeks long and begins on June 5. It uses behavior modification techniques and group support to help smokers quit. In addition, the class will include information on pre-natal care, exercising while pregnant, nutrition and weight control. Each week, small gifts such as T- shirts and baby bibs will be given to participants.

Ruggeri said quitting any time during pregnancy will be beneficial.

``It doesn`t matter what stage of pregnancy they are in,`` she said. ``Of course, the earlier the better, but whenever they quit, they will have a much easier time in delivery and their baby will be healthier.``

The program is designed to work for pregnancy and beyond, she said.

``We are pushing good health, so hopefully that infant won`t be exposed to second-hand smoke,`` she said.

QUITTING FOR TWO

-- What: A free smoking-cessation program for pregnant women.

-- When: From 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on June 5. The program continues for six weeks.